Dan Atkinson

Reporter, formerly at Boston Herald and Gatehouse Media, currently working for you? Investigations, reportage and opinion. danatkins1 at

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

Big Dig, meet Big Papi? MassDOT is preparing to give a David Ortiz-backed company making mobile electric vehicle chargers a $1M no-bid contract. My latest for @BINJreports https://t.co/I1oDEAepL5

[Chris Faraone @Fara1]

This is a tremendous article by @_danatkinson_. Nobody tipped us off to this, it came from going through hundreds of contracts and proposals and looking up who was behind ones that seemed questionable. This is #journalism. We'll see if it makes the 5 o'clock news.

[BINJ @BINJreports]

Check out our latest investigation into state contracts ...

Commonwealth seeks no-bid contract with #DavidOrtiz -tied #EV charger company.

Read the full article by @_danatkinson_ ...

#mapoli #electricvehicles #RedSox #Boston #MassDOT

https://t.co/T1ivJf0DR2

[Chris Faraone @Fara1]

Hey everyone did you see our big #MBTA scoop this week? They spent millions studying train safety and won't show the public the reports. And they will keep them secret unless you cause an uproar ...
https://t.co/w8pSBWri4j

#publictransit #investigativereporting #bospoli

[New England First Amendment Coalition @FiveFreedoms]

NEFAC Executive Director Justin Silverman recently spoke to Dan Atkinson at @BINJreports about the lack of transparency within the MBTA.

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

For @BINJreports: The #MBTA spent $3M on workforce and safety studies, but won't release them for fear of 'setting unclear or incomplete expectations for the media and public.' https://t.co/MJXTbW7FVM

[Chris Faraone @Fara1]

The MBTA spent millions of dollars commissioning multiple safety studies, and now they won't show them to the media or public.

GEE, I WONDER WHAT THAT MEANS!?!

The latest from @BINJreports
and @_danatkinson_

#publictransit #transparency

https://t.co/3eyMl85VIT

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

Big news from the #MBTA today about its new fare system, but there are still big questions about equity/bias issues in fare collection https://t.co/d5dVQOv14R and what this will really cost the T (and how much will go to private equity firms) @BINJreports https://t.co/ZnjCKvXtkv

[BINJ @BINJreports]

This is a bad one. A very, very bad one ...

https://t.co/xZbQvGAu9n

#mbta #mbtafail #redline #orangeline #blueline #greenline #Boston

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

'We can’t get folks on Beacon Hill to wake up and pay attention to this project,” an advocate told me. It's a complex story, but people need to pay attention. Thanks to @StreetsBoston @PubInterest @amprog for insight. https://t.co/ZnjCKvWVuX

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

The #MBTA is eager to tout a new fare system coming online this summer - they're less eager to talk about whether delays will cost them daily six-figure payments to private equity lenders. My latest for @BINJreports https://t.co/ZnjCKvXtkv

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

And now that private equity is involved, we have even less info. But we do know the T has paid nearly a billion dollars for a system that won't be fully ready for another two years - and that the people they're paying are turning around and hiring lobbyists to work Beacon Hill

[Chris Faraone @Fara1]

Thanks to the @EFF for helping get the word out about our ongoing @BINJreports investigation by @_danatkinson_ into cell site simulators and other #surveillance tools.

https://t.co/Bdool24BWs

#mapoli #massachusettsstatepolice

[EFF @EFF]

“Facial recognition still gets things wrong, especially in reference to Black men and women,” EFF’s @MGuariglia told @HorizonMass, and “police around the country have demonstrated they can’t be trusted to do follow-up investigations.” https://t.co/MNMJEjhRLn

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

- despite it being shown to racially discriminate and misidentify people. Thanks to @JamieEldridgeMA , @digitalfourth, @EFF and @ACLU_Mass for insights, read the full report at @HorizonMass https://t.co/eZrrlevxP9

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

New for @BINJreports: While #mapoli legislators are looking to restrict the use of facial recognition, their own security system at the State House is getting an upgrade with the technology https://t.co/eZrrlevxP9

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

Security promises to never use the tech, but civil liberties experts are skeptical: "Any technology that is adopted, you have to assume it is going to be exploited.” And currently, Mass. police are using the tech to investigate fraud and financial crimes -

[EFF @EFF]

“This is the clearest picture that we’ve gotten of how cell-site simulators are operated, installed, and sold to police in years,” EFF’s @CooperQ told @HorizonMass. “There absolutely needs to be case law requiring a warrant for a simulator.”
https://t.co/n8qYMnnxpr

[Dan Atkinson @_danatkinson_]

@just_steve_h @Fara1 @BINJreports And here's a look from 2022 about how Boston officials went around a surveillance transparency ordinance to get more ShotSpotter tech: https://t.co/H0jB5RPQBQ